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Participation
Culturally and Linguistically Diverse People

In Victoria, despite many newly arrive persons and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds being involved in sport and active recreation, there is still a gap in the participation rates when compared to the broader population.

In 2016, the Australian Sports Commission released the AusPlay survey. The survey provides data for the sports industry about participation rates in both organised and non-organised sport. AusPlay asks survey respondents if they speak a language other than English at home. Data released in 2016 showed that people who spoke a language other than English at home were less likely to participate in sport or physical activity than those who spoke only English:

  • Adults who speak a language other English at home are 10% less likely to participate in sport or active recreation activities at a rate of 3 times per week.
  • Children who speak a language other than English at home are 14% less likely to participate in sport or active recreation at least once per year (outside of school hours).

(Source: Australian Sport Commission, Clearinghouse for Sport, Cultural Diversity in Sport, 2024)

With almost 50% of our population either born overseas or with a parent born overseas, there is an enormous opportunity to engage more people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds in sport. There are a range of actions that sports can take to be more actively inclusive of people with diverse backgrounds, including getting to know and understanding the local community, forming partnerships and providing a welcoming experience.

Sporting participation can be a great way for newly arrived persons to connect with each other and with the communities in which they settle. The way sport organisations support newly arrived communities to participate may differ from longer-settled communities such as second or third generation migrants. There are benefits to both sport organisations and individuals. The benefits to newly arrive migrants or refugees include:

  • The health benefits of physical activity, including a decreased risk of chronic disease.
  • Mental health benefits including reduced stress and increased self-esteem.
  • Reducing social isolation and helping build social connections.

Sport organisations, including clubs and associations, can also benefit by engaging newly arrived refugees and diverse communities. Some of the documented benefits include:

  • Increased membership, volunteers and participation.
  • Increased knowledge of other cultures, which can build cross-cultural understanding and mutual respect.
  • Developing more welcoming and accessible environments, which can benefit the organisation’s broader approach to increasing participation through engaging the local community.

You can read more about the benefits of refugees participating in sport in the Refugee Council of Australia’s A Bridge to a New Culture: Promoting the participation of refugees in sporting activities report.

The Centre for Multicultural Youth is an organisation leading the charge for greater diversity in sport with a focus on youth. Their Game Plan resource provides valuable information being a culturally inclusive club and engaging diverse youth. Click here to view the resource.

Sport organisations should be aware that when phrases such as ‘culturally and linguistically diverse’ or ‘newly arrived migrants or refugees’ are used, they don’t refer to singular or homogenous groups of people. There are over 260 languages and 130 different faiths in Victoria alone. Therefore, the suggested approach for understanding culturally and linguistically diverse communities is to:

  • Understand the local area in which your club or association located.
  • Connect with local communities through leaders and organisations.

In Victoria each Local Government Area has a different demographical profile, so it makes sense for sport organisations to work within the local community rather than aiming to be inclusive of a demographic that is not present.

For example, in the City of Hume in Melbourne’s north west, 32% of residents are from countries English is not the first language spoken. In the City of Boroondara in Melbourne’s inner east, the same figure is 24% (source: .id the population experts). The profile of countries which residents have migrated from will also differ within each local area.

Your organisation will benefit by getting to know your local community. Your contact point will be local community leaders or organisations who provide services or support in your area. The local council is often a reliable resource for understand who these groups are. Community leaders may include the leaders of local community support organisations, leaders of migrant and refugee support organisations, leaders of religious institutions, or prominent members of migrant communities. If you aim to offer opportunities to a specific group – such as newly arrive people from the same country – it is important to speak to them directly so that you understand how you can support their participation and what potential barriers they might face. This allows you to tailor your programs to meet their needs.

There are also lots of great resources available which provide research and statistics about culturally and linguistically diverse people:

  • .id the population experts is an excellent source of community profile information and has up to date data based on local government areas.
  • The Victorian Multicultural Commission provides data summaries based on the most recent 2016 census.
  • The AusPlay survey provides data and information about participation trends in Australian sport.

There are lots of organisations you can partner with to help you promote and support opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds to participate. These organisations might also be able to provide training and awareness sessions to build the capability of your staff and volunteers to support ongoing participation.

The Centre for Multicultural Youth partners with several State Sporting Associations and clubs to assist them to be more inclusive of diverse youth. CMY can assist your organisation to connect with communities in an appropriate way.

At the local level, potential partner organisations could include your local council, schools or other organisations such as community centres, faith based organisations, language schools or consulates. If you want to find these organisations in your area, the Victorian Multicultural Commission has a community directory.

You can also partner with the Centre for Culture, Ethnicity and Health to create translated resources or access cultural diversity training programs.

The VicHealth Partnerships Analysis Tool is a very useful guide for assessing and developing effective partnerships. It is one of the most downloaded resources ever from the VicHealth website.

Partnership Example

International Student Academy – Cricket Victoria, Study Melbourne, Deakin University, Bendigo TAFE and Kangan Institute.

It is important for your sport organisation to provide a welcoming and positive experience for newly arrived migrants and refugees or other people with diverse backgrounds. The first experience that any person has at a sporting organisation is vital to helping them feel comfortable and motivated to return.

Sport organisations should take an actively inclusive approach to providing a welcoming experience to people from any background. To do this, you could consider providing resources, training and support to individuals at all levels of the sport, including committee members, administrators, volunteers, coaches, officials, families and participants.

Some actions your organisation can take include:

  • Training. Provide face to face training to your coaches to build their capability to work with people from diverse backgrounds.
  • Resources. Consider providing communication tools, plain language fact sheets, best practice checklists and educational resources to support the people who deliver your sport. Ensure you communicate these resources widely within your sport in different formats including written, visual and online.
  • Food and drink. Consider the value of promoting healthy food and drink options. This promotes healthy lifestyles for club members and reduces the normalization of alcohol in the club environment, which is a cultural factor which could be a turn off for people who come from a country where alcohol is not consumed at as high rates as Australia. Your organisation should also ask members what you can do to support cultural or religious festivals that members adhere to which impact the way food and drink is consumed.
  • Specific club roles: Many sport clubs nominate an individual from the committee to be the Welcoming Officer whose role is to actively welcome new families and members to the club. You could also instigate a buddy system to pair new members with someone who can help them feel welcome in their first few months at the club. Another role employed by some clubs is a Community Liaison Officer whose role is to engage local community organisations and residents and promote opportunities at the club.
  • Translate resources. Consider providing general club documents in languages other than English. This could include club flyers, membership forms or any other documents which you require people to read or sign to allow them to participate.
  • Leadership: Get your leaders, including committee members, coaches and others, to lead by example and create a culture that supports participation by people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (for more information see the Leadership section).
  • Understand the barriers. You can read the Centre for Multicultural Youth Game Plan resource to understand more about the barriers to multicultural youth. 

Recently VicHealth and the Centre for Multicultural Youth released a resource about promoting cultural diversity in junior sport. The two-page infographic Participation vs Performance provides relevant information and tips for clubs.

For more information, check out the following State Sporting Association pages about supporting clubs to be more inclusive:

Cricket Australia's Diversity & Inclusion policies

Basketball Victoria's Diversity and Inclusion Resource Hub